Protect You
by laceylove
Summary: Arthur finds himself drawn to a stranger who has been hurt very badly, he opens his home and his heart to him. He finds he holds a deep desire to protect the younger man, he soon finds himself falling in love. Will the broken stranger feel the same?


**Warning: Contains rape (no descriptions just alluded to), some horrible injuries and a little bad language. If any of the things will offend you, please don't read. I tried to keep it as tasteful as possible while also trying not to detract from the horror of rape. **

**Arthur is a little sweeter in this than he is in the show. Because I think that under his douche bag demeanour he is wonderful =D**

**I own nothing, I make no money from this, the characters and original story is owned by BBC. **

Arthur walked quickly and quietly down the hall of the apartment building, Gwen was right behind him. As they approached room 14 they could hear a man's voice yelling obscenities punctuated with the sound of a fist hitting flesh. He took the left side of the door while Gwen stood right in front of it. The perp was more often than not so surprised to see a female cop breaking up a domestic that Arthur could catch them by surprise and detain them. Gwen knocked on the door three times. "Police, open up." She stepped back and rested her hand on her baton. There was murmuring and rustling before the door swung back. A tall dark haired man filled the doorway; his hair was plastered to his face with sweat. "What?"

Arthur stepped forward and grabbed the man's shoulder, he spun him around and pulled both arms up his back, he snapped on cuffs. "You are under arrest on suspicion of grievous bodily harm." Arthur sat the man down in the entryway and Gwen nodded to him, silently telling him to go ahead and locate the victim. He stepped into the living room and looked around the room. There was a freestanding lamp on its side and a set of torn men's clothing thrown about the room. Realising the woman was probably hiding Arthur called out. "This is Officer Pendragon; it's safe to come out now." He stood quietly, trying to hear anything to give him an indication of where she would be hiding. He walked into the open plan kitchen and listened once more; he heard a rustling from the pantry and took one step before he heard a sliding then a thump. Opening the double doors he saw a man lying unconscious on the floor of pantry, he was mostly naked and covered in blood and bruises. "Gwen, we need paramedics, now." He could hear his partner calling the medics in. Arthur knelt down and took the man's pulse, it was thready and weak. He really hadn't expected to be a man, but as soon as he thought it he felt stereotypical and just rude. He searched the man in confusion, wondering what could have caused him to lose consciousness and for his pulse to be so weak. Arthur saw that the man had two black eyes, a broken nose that was bleeding down his cheek, a split lip and eyebrow. He had dark bruises on his upper arms and elbows. There were deep scratches up his ribcage and bite marks on his thighs; that was when Arthur saw the blood on his thighs. So much blood. He shook his head in disgust and glared at the man in the doorway.

"Two minutes til the meds get here, Arthur." Gwen called out; Arthur didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to stem the flow of blood, and he wasn't sure if there was anything else he could do. He gently lifted the man and pulled him out of the pantry and onto the kitchen floor, when he heard Gwen suck in a gasp he knew she could see the damage. "Did he deserve it?" She asked the perp with sarcasm and disgust dripping from her words. As the man began to defend himself Arthur heard feet running up the stairs, Gwen grabbed the man and dragged him by his collar into the living room. The two paramedic officers rushed in and were by Arthur's side in moments.

They were taking his pulse, inserting a drip into his hand and checking his pupils seemingly all at once. "He's bleeding from the anus and I think he may have a concussion." Arthur stepped back and watched them work until they put him on a stretcher and took him out of the apartment. Gwen and Arthur escorted the perp down to the cruiser and took him into lock up. He let Gwen drive because he was too preoccupied with thoughts of the man on his way to emergency. What could possess someone to do that to someone else? Arthur shook his head and scrubbed his face with the back of a hand. He couldn't get the image of all that blood out of his mind, it was making him angry and worried. He felt far angrier than he had any right to, he also felt protective. And if he dared to admit it to himself he had felt tenderness in his gut when he had been assessing the damage to the man's body.

They arrived at the station where they put Lance (as he informed them, so that his record could be pulled up) in one of the fish tanks. He and Gwen had to report to their commander before the interview, thankfully it was over quickly. Arthur's thoughts shifted to Merlin, how extensive was the damage to his body? Would he recover?

Arthur shook his head and tried to focus, he and Gwen had to question the man and he didn't want these feelings to be clouding his thoughts. He nodded to Gwen and she walked in ahead of him. He took a seat slightly away from the table in the centre of the room; Gwen sat directly in front of the scowling man. "Lance McIntyre, if you could walk us through what happened tonight." Gwen sat back slightly and looked at him expectantly. This open question sometimes gave the perp the courage to explain their side of the story, or gave them the power to not speak at all. In this instance Lance opened up straight away.

"If he had of just shut up it wouldn't have gotten so bad!" He was leaning forward and looking between Gwen and Arthur, obviously hoping that they would agree that he hadn't done anything wrong. "I was angry because he was taking so long to get home, and I just know that he has something going with his boss. He just kept lying, telling me had to stay back to help a customer, that there was nothing going on with his boss." A look of anger crossed Lance's face. "It just got out of control. He was lying to me, keeping things from me, cheating on me. I wanted to show him that he was mine, and that no one else could have him. But he just kept saying it over and over that there was nothing going on. It got me so angry. So I hit him, then I couldn't stop. Then next thing I knew I... Well, I..." He looked down and Arthur knew he was talking about the rape. "After I was finished he was crying and bleeding. And I was still so angry. More angry because he hadn't wanted me, so I started hitting him again. Then next thing I knew, you were pounding on the door and I told him to hide and keep quiet." His voice had begun to tremble as he reached the end of his story. Arthur's jaw was clenched as he stared at Lance. He could no longer refer to him as a man, even in his mind. They had their confession and Arthur left the room so that Gwen could finish up. He didn't want to be anywhere near Lance any longer.

Walking to his desk he sat down and sighed heavily. He leaned back and tried to ease the building headache by closing his eyes. Realising it was of no use he sat forward and began typing up his report. Even if the victim didn't want to press charges, the state would. As Arthur began filling out the report Gwen took her seat at the desk opposite his, she silently passed him a copy of the complete interview. This was why he enjoyed working with Gwen; she didn't feel the need to fill silence with mindless chatter. Arthur was more than halfway through his report when a file came in about the victim, Merlin Emrys. He was twenty, was a joint owner in a specialty bakery and had no criminal record. He had no family, which made Arthur feel sad that he would have no one to help him through his recovery, from the emotional and physical abuse. Arthur wondered if Merlin would have anywhere to go now. He was distracted by Gwen's phone ringing, he tried to block her out and succeeded when his headache began to gather strength and bombard his temples with pain. He got up and filled a polystyrene cup with the water from the cooler and swallowed two paracetamol, they wouldn't fix the problem, only a good night's sleep could do that, but they would ease the sharp, stabbing pains.

As he walked back to his desk Gwen hung up the phone with a look of worry on her face, she glanced up at him as she spoke, "Emrys is in theatre having emergency surgery. They didn't really go into details except to say that he had broken ribs and extensive... internal damage." Arthur chose not to think about what that meant. Gwen looked at him with fire in her eyes. Her mother had been beaten to death by her father; she accepted no excuse for violence against a spouse. She also ran a group where victims of domestic violence could talk about how they were recovering; they could give and receive support. "The nurse said that Merlin will be out of it until at least tomorrow afternoon and they'll give us a call when he's lucid." Arthur wasn't looking forward to interviewing Merlin. He didn't want to see him in pain, broken and hurting. There was another reason; he didn't want his feelings towards Merlin to increase tenfold when he saw the vulnerable younger man in such a state.

_m_(o.o)_m_

It was three days before Gwen received the call that Merlin was awake and able to answer questions. In that time Gwen and Arthur had gotten a statement from the woman who had called in the domestic and from two neighbours who had heard the violence on more than one occasion. Lance was in prison awaiting the trial that would decide his fate. Arthur had barely slept, every time he closed his eyes all he could see was Merlin's pale skin and the blood that had covered him. He had been having a recurring dream since he had first lain eyes on Merlin.

He and Merlin were in a dark room and Merlin was crying Arthur knew he had to protect him, to save him from any more pain. There was someone coming and Arthur had to make sure they didn't come through the door. He would sit Merlin in a dark corner and run his fingers through his black hair, attempting to soothe him before slamming the door shut and locking it. He would lean all his weight against the door as it began to rattle as if a thousand fists were pummelling it. Arthur would look over at Merlin and the banging would stop, it went from thunderous noise to silence so quickly that even though it was a dream, it would startle him awake. He could guess at its meaning, but preferred not to think about it.

Gwen decided that Arthur should interview Merlin alone, so that he didn't feel pressured or panicked. Arthur was nervous as he pulled into the hospital car park; he ran his hands through his hair and straightened his uniform. He made his way to the reception desk and told them why he was there. He was quickly shown to Merlin's room; he took a deep breath before he entered. Merlin was facing the windows on the other side of the room; he was hooked up to a heart monitor. The sheet that covered him was around his waist and Arthur could see the bandages that encased his ribs. He could see the bruising on his abdomen. He looked up at his profile as he spoke. "Merlin?" He turned to face him and Arthur had to clench his jaw to stop from gasping as he was dazzled Merlins bright blue eyes even if they were swollen and bruised. "I'm Officer Pendragon; I just have a few questions if you feel up to them." Merlin just nodded. Arthur walked closer and took a seat next to the bed. "Are you in a lot of pain?" It was probably unprofessional but he wanted to know how he was.

"Not really, it just... Well, everything aches." Arthur gritted his teeth, knowing why Merlin had blushed and seemed so uncomfortable. That son of a bitch had raped his boyfriend in a jealous rage, so badly that he had had to have surgery to repair the damage. Arthur would never have treated Merlin in such a way. He would have trusted him, and looked after him, protecting him and caring for him. He what? Trying not to let the shock show on his face he just nodded and grabbed his notepad. He suddenly wondered if his presence would scare him.

"We've already got a statement from Lance, but we still need your side of the story. So if you could just tell me everything that happened that night. Start from when you finished work." Merlin didn't even look surprised that Arthur knew he had been at work. But he did just look exhausted so he may not have noticed that he hadn't told Arthur anything yet.

"I was supposed to finish work at five but we had a little old lady come in who wanted a cake made as a surprise for her sixtieth wedding anniversary. She was so sweet I couldn't say no even though we were closing. So I let her in and we worked out what she wanted over a cup of coffee, by the time she left it was a quarter to six and I still had to lock up. I didn't get home until about six thirty and by then Lance had worked himself into a rage." Merlin sighed before he continued. "He was going on about me sleeping with my boss. Who is a fifty year old man, who is happily married, and who wasn't even there! I tried to tell him nothing was going on, I tried to explain about the customer. But he just punched me, he hit me so hard that I fell back and landed on my elbows." He held one up and showed me the impressive purple bruise. "He was yelling about me lying, and cheating. He kept saying that I was his. Then he said he'd prove it. That's when he... When he..." Merlin took a deep breath and continued. "That's when he started tearing off my clothes. He pushed me down onto my stomach and he... he..." Merlin was crying; silent tears streaking down his cheeks. He whispered. "I thought he loved me, but people don't do that to people they love, do they?" He looked at Arthur with vulnerable questioning eyes. "They don't hurt, or bully, or control people they love, do they?"

"No, Merlin, they don't. If someone loves you they will never raise a hand to you, they won't say things just to hurt you and they would trust you and let you make your own decisions." He just nodded and looked even more dejected. Arthur realised where his thoughts must have lead. "I think that Lance doesn't know how to love someone properly," Arthur kept his voice relaxed, as if he were pondering aloud. "I think he has issues with control, self esteem and jealousy." He looked Merlin in the eye as he spoke so that he knew that every word he spoke was true. "A man who reacts like that when someone is late is not a man at all." Merlin stared at him. Arthur began to feel uncomfortable under the scrutiny of such a look.

"How old are you Officer Pendragon?" He seemed intrigued about something but Arthur couldn't guess as to what it was.

"Please, call me Arthur. I'm twenty-seven." Why did he want to know how old he was?

"Are you married, Arthur?" What's with the personal questions?

"No, I'm not."

"Do you want to get married?" Merlin had a look of polite curiosity on his face which Arthur found incredulous considering the situation.

"Maybe one day, if I find the right person." Arthur was wondering where this was going.

"Person? Not woman?" Had he said that? Well it was out there now.

"Yes Merlin, I'm bi-sexual." He tried to say it as casually as possible but the wide eyed shock on Merlin's face made the corners of his mouth lift in the first time since before Arthur had met Merlin. "What cops can't be bi?"

"No, no, it's not that. Just well... You're beautiful and if you are twenty-seven and not married then what hope do I have of ever finding someone who loves me?" Beautiful? Really? Arthur's stomach was filling with butterflies.

"Merlin, I'm not married because I haven't found the right person yet. You're probably going through feelings of guilt and very low self esteem. I volunteer in a group that helps survivors of domestic violence get back on their feet. You should come as soon as you're able to leave the hospital. They'll help you with all these emotions, so you won't have to go through it alone." Merlin was looking sceptical so Arthur just smiled. "And besides Merlin, you are very attractive yourself." Merlin blushed; bright red and his heart rate sped up as shown on the monitor. He looked even more sceptical as he glanced down at his ribs. He obviously did understand that Arthur meant he laws beautiful and his injuries didn't detract from that, if anything they made him look delicate and mysterious. Trying to distract him Arthur spoke again. "When do they think you'll be allowed to go home?"

"They said in maybe a week, but I can't go back to work for months. But it's okay because I don't know where I'm going to go. I don't have anywhere to live." Arthur was surprised that there was nowhere he could go.

"There no friends that could let you crash at their places?" Arthur was hopeful.

"No, Lance chased all my friends away. The only person I have is Harry and he can't take me in. The doctor said I need to be resting for most of the time. So I'll need someone to do pretty much everything for me because of my ribs. I suppose I'll just have to get a hotel room and an outpatient nurse." Merlin shrugged then winced when the movement caused his ribs to move in response. Arthur suddenly realised that he'd been there far longer than necessary.

"Well, hopefully something comes up. Thankyou Mr Emrys. We'll be in contact about the charges. My partner will contact you about the survivors group if you wish to come. I hope you feel better." Arthur stood and gathered his things.

Merlin nodded. "Thank you Officer." Arthur left the room and as he made his way back to the station he wondered why he felt so empty.

_m_(o.o)_m_

It had been five days since Arthur had seen Merlin. He had barely slept, barely eaten. He felt sick and exhausted. He couldn't concentrate on his work, which put him and his partner in danger. Every time he relaxed all he could think about was Merlin crying as he stutteringly described the horrors he had been put through. He didn't know what to do. He didn't have anyone to confide in.

It was the day before Merlin was due to be released and Arthur was more aggravated than usual, he was worried about what Merlin would do. He had been silent most of the day, at lunch Gwen suddenly grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the building. She led him across the street into the park and sat him down on a bench. She looked at him with eyebrows raised. "What?"

"What the hell is going on with you, Arthur?" Her features softened. "I'm worried about you, you're not yourself. You're moping and ignoring practically everyone." He shook his head.

"I don't know Gwen. Really, I don't know what the fuck is wrong with me." Suddenly she smirked.

"Does it have anything to do with Merlin?" His jaw dropped. How could she know that? She chuckled. "I was there, I saw the way you were with him, and even though you had never even spoken to the man you looked at him with such concern and... and tenderness. I saw how angry you were when we interviewed Lance. So what's going on?"

"I don't know why Gwen. I just feel drawn to him. I just want to protect him. I'm so worried because he doesn't have anyone to look after him. And there's nothing I can do about it." These were things he'd barely admitted to himself. Gwen just smirked.

"He asked about you yesterday when I went to see him. He asked why you weren't there and if you would be at the support group." Arthur looked surprised. "I have an idea that will help both of you."

_m_(o.o)_m_

Arthur sucked in a deep breath and strapped a bit of mental steel to his back as he entered Merlin's room. If anything Merlin looked worse. The bruises were darker, and he looked even more exhausted, but he was sitting up and reading, so he must be feeling a lot better. He looked up and a look of pleasant surprise crossed his face. "Good morning Merlin." He crossed the room and sat in the chair next to the bed.

"Good morning Arthur, do you have more questions?" He looked a little confused but still happy that Arthur was there.

"No, no. I, um, have a proposition for you." For the first time Merlin looked wary. "It's nothing bad. You said you don't have anywhere to stay, and that you need someone to look after you?" Merlin nodded, still looking wary. "Well." He cleared his throat. "I have the next two months off, and I live alone, I have first aid training, and uh, I thought maybe you could stay with me." When Merlin's eyebrows rose Arthur rushed on. "I know we don't know each other very well but I could look after you and take you to group and to your check ups. If you don't want to its fine, I just wanted you to have an option other than a hotel room." Arthur glanced down, nervous now that it was all out there.

"Well, I suppose that would be a lot better than a hotel room, but you know what having me stay with you would encapsulate?" Merlin was actually thinking about it?

"Yes. I spoke to one of the nurses, she told me that I would have to help you wash, and to medicate you. I can hire a carer if you would be uncomfortable with me helping you do those things." He had already found a motherly outpatient nurse who would help Merlin to wash and apply medicated ointment, to rather more intimate areas of his body. He found a woman so that Merlin wouldn't have to deal with a man being near him like that, touching him like that.

"Well, then." Merlin looked at him with that soul searching gaze again, Arthur fidgeted under that stare. "In that case, thankyou Arthur, that's very kind of you."

Had he actually said yes? "So that's a yes then?"

Merlin smiled at him in the way that a parent smiles at a confused child. "Yes."

_m_(o.o)_m_

"You live in a house?" Merlin's head turned so fast Arthur was surprised his neck didn't break, he chuckled. "How much do you make?"

"I inherited it Merlin." He pulled into the garage and got out, he rushed around to merlins door and opened it. "Do you want me to carry you?"

"No, I can walk." Merlin stood and Arthur retrieved his back out of the trunk. He led the way into the house. The door from the garage led into the kitchen and dining room. Merlin looked around curiously. The room was open plan with a breakfast bar separating the two rooms. There were large French doors along the back wall into the backyard. "It's lovely Arthur."

"Thank you. Would you like a tour or do you want to rest?" Merlin looked at him with a smirk. "Tour it is then." Arthur led him through the house. Showing him the living room and office. He took him down the hall. "At the end there is the bathroom. This is your room, and just across the hall is mine." Merlin just watched as Arthur opened the door to the spare room. He put Merlins bag down on the end of the queen bed. The room had a dresser, wardrobe, and television. "What do you think?"

"It's lovely." Merlin was still looking around the room. "Can I see your room?"

"Uh, sure. It's messy." Arthur walked to the room directly across the hall. He pushed the door open and let Merlin walk in ahead of him. He had a king sized bed in the middle of the room, and not much else. Two bedside tables, and a walk in closet.

"Nice bed." Arthur chuckled that that was the only thing that Merlin commented upon.

"Come on, let's get some food. It's nearly two and I haven't had anything since breakfast. You can unpack your stuff if you like and I'll call you when the foods ready." Merlin nodded and walked back over to his room. Arthur walked down to the kitchen and realised he was the most relaxed he'd been since he'd met Merlin. He quickly gathered bacon, eggs, tomatoes and mushrooms. He made quick work of cooking everything, he served it up and went to collect Merlin. He tapped on the slightly ajar door and pushed it open. Merlin was lying on his side with his eyes closed. "Merlin? What's wrong?" Arthur was kneeling down beside Merlin before he knew he'd even moved.

"I feel horrible Arthur. You're letting me into your house, feeding me, driving me everywhere and paying for someone to come and help me. It's too much, I should get a hotel room." He began to sit up as if he would leave. Arthur stood.

"Merlin, I don't mind doing any of this. I only offered the nurse because I didn't think you'd be comfortable with me assisting you." Arthur looked at him seriously. "It's your choice Merlin, if you would prefer I helped you then I will. If you want to go to a hotel I'll take you there. Whatever you want." Merlin was looking down, he glanced up at Arthurs face.

"I don't mind you helping me, it would be better than a stranger." Arthur was shocked. He hadn't expected that.

"Okay then, I will. Now let's go eat, it's getting cold."

_m_(o.o)_m_

The day had passed pleasantly. They had eaten and sat talking about Merlin's bakery. He was a qualified baker, and produced cakes for special occasions. It was obvious from the way he spoke that he loved to cook. Arthur decided that he would acquire some things so that Merlin could bake at any time he wished. Maybe Arthur could help him. They'd gravitated to the lounge and had played video games for a while before Merlin fell asleep on the couch. Arthur sat quietly on a recliner watching some sitcom, he realised he should probably wake Merlin up and get him ready for bed. But he was nervous about what he had to do to get him ready for bed. _Suck it up, princess._

He walked up and stood next to merlins sleeping form. "Merlin, come on. You've gotta have a shower." Merlin's eyes fluttered open. He slowly sat up, wincing in pain and scrubbed his face.

"Okay." Arthur walked ahead of him down to the bathroom. "I just wear track suit pants to bed." Arthur nodded and grabbed the grey pants off Merlin's bed.

They entered the bathroom and Merlin looked nervous. "Do you need me to help you undress?" Merlin nodded without looking at him. Arthur stepped forward and grabbed the hem of Merlins shirt he gently pulled it up to his chest and Merlin slipped his arms through it. He started to unwind the bandages and tried not to notice the muscle definition on his abdomen. He winced when he saw the scar where he had been operated upon. He then undid Merlins pants and gently pulled them down, allowing Merlin to step out of them. He wasn't wearing underwear and Arthur kept his gaze averted. He turned the shower on. "How do you like it? Warm, cool, hot?" His hands were shaking.

"Warm." Arthur nodded and stepped back so that Merlin could step into the shower. He stood under the spray and as the water began to cascade down his body Arthur looked away. He felt like a pervert. He was very attracted to Merlin and it wasn't right that he was thinking about that when he had to help Merlin. "Um, Arthur?" Arthur looked back at Merlin, careful to only look at his face. "It hurts to lift my arms, do you think you could help me wash my hair?" Trying to only think logically Arthur threw off his shirt and stepped into the shower stall, he was still wearing his board shorts, he was just trying to keep himself comfortable and Merlin as well.

He grabbed the shampoo and lathered it into Merlins hair. He tried to keep it as quick as possible, but when it came time to condition his hair, Arthur couldn't help but slightly massage Merlins head. He could see the younger man relaxing and he was relieved that he wasn't making him uncomfortable. He then grabbed a washcloth and lathered it in soap. He began at Merlins neck and worked across his broad shoulders, as he worked he took in Merlins injuries, there was dark bruising across his shoulders and tailbone, the scratches on his ribs were healing, as were the cuts on his face. The bruising on his abdomen was healing, it still looked horrid, all yellow and discoloured. As he reached Merlins hips he stopped. "Can you wash you're...? Or do you need me to?" Merlin blushed, his eyes closed.

"No I can." He grabbed the soap and Arthur looked away as Merlin washed his genitals. "I need you to uh..." Arthur just nodded. He had been successful in only touching with his hands when he washed the other mans hair, but now came the moment that Arthur was most nervous about. He washed the cheeks of Merlins arse with the washcloth and used one hand to slightly spread his cheeks as he used the cloth to very gently wash him. Merlin sucked in a gasp and Arthur tried to hurry but continue to be gentle. He rinsed the cloth thoroughly before continuing down Merlins legs. When he finished he stepped out of the stall so that Merlin could rinse himself. Arthur shut the door and kicked off his dripping shorts. He dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist.

"Merlin, I'm just going to chuck some clothes on, I'll be right back." Arthur rushed to his room and threw on pyjama pants and a singlet. The shower was still running when he walked back into the bathroom. Merlin smiled at him nervously as he opened the shower door. "Come on." He held out a towel and wrapped it around Merlin as he stepped out, he reached in and shut the water off. He quickly towel dried Merlin and slipped his pants up his legs. "I'll just go get a glass of water for you pills, go hop in bed." Things could have been worse Arthur supposed as he grabbed the pills that Merlin needed to take and the ointment that had to be applied. Merlin could have cried or asked Arthur to leave.

Merlin was lying on his bed when Arthur entered the room. He was on his side facing Arthur, he smiled nervously, "Now for the fun part." Arthur chuckled. Merlin just smiled as he tried to pull his pants down, Arthur helped him to pull them to his knees then Merlin rolled onto his front. Arthur took a deep breath, he put the cream onto his fingers and spread merlins arse cheeks. He had to look, there was no choice. He could see Merlins hole was swollen and pink, thankfully there were no healing cuts here. Arthur very gently applied the cream, Merlin sighed and relaxed as the ointment came into contact with his skin. "Just relax Merlin." Arthur put a little more cream onto his index finger and very gently inserted it, he only needed to insert it up to his first knuckle and apply the cream to the inside of Merlins anus. Merlin whimpered as Arthur slowly removed his finger. Arthur wiped his fingers on a tissue and pulled Merlin's pants up. He placed his hand on Merlins shoulder.

"I'm sorry Merlin, did I hurt you?" Merlin shook his head. Was he crying? "Um, your pills are just here." Arthur looked at the back of Merlin's head and sighed. They had to go through this again in the morning. "Goodnight Merlin." Arthur shut the door and walked into the living room, after locking up and turning all the lights off he made his way to his own bed. He was worried that he'd hurt Merlin, or that he'd made him uncomfortable. He would ask him in the morning if he'd changed his mind about the nurse. It took him a long time to admit that touching Merlin had turned him on, that he had been thinking about when Merlin was healed and if there would be a possibility of touching him then. It took an even longer time to fall asleep.

**So, what did you think? Too much? Reviews help me think of new ideas =P**

**I don't have a beta, so if my grammar or spelling is hideous then feel free to offer to beta for me. Also, I have absolutely no experience in police, or hospital matters, so if anything is terribly incorrect let me know and I'll try to fix it up.**


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